Field Hearings: Fact Sheet on Purposes, Rules, Regulations, and Guidelines

Purposes of Field Hearings.................................................................................................1
Chamber Rules....................................................................................................................1
Committee Rules.................................................................................................................1
Regulations and Guidelines................................................................................................1
Ve nue .................................................................................................................................. 2
Author Contact Information............................................................................................................3

^Pr^ep^ar^{ed f}^o^r^M^e^m^b^ers^an^d^Com^mⁱ^t^t^ees^of^C^ong^r^e^ss

ield hearings are congressional hearings held outside Washington. They date at least to the
Civil War, when committees sometimes traveled to the front lines to observe conditions and
war preparedness. For more information on legislative process, see http://www.crs.gov/¹F

products/guides/guidehome.shtml.
Members and committees hold field hearings for a variety of reasons. A field hearing brings ^th
Congress directly to the scene of an important national issue. For example, in the 110 Congress,
a Senate subcommittee held a field hearings in New Orleans, Louisiana, on the status of repairs in
the aftermath of the Katrina and Rita hurricanes. A field hearing can serve other purposes. It can
• raise public visibility of an issue;
• provide an opportunity to evaluate a government program “on site”;
• reinforce a Member’s relationship with his or her constituents; and
• attract local and sometimes national media attention.
The formal authority for field hearings is found implicitly in chamber rules. House Rule XI,
clause 2, states in part that a committee is authorized “to sit and act at such times and places
within the United States, whether the House is in session, has recessed, or has adjourned, and to
hold such hearings as it considers necessary.” Similarly, Senate Rule XXVI, paragraph 1, states
that a committee “is authorized to hold such hearings to sit and act at such times and places
during the sessions, recesses, and adjourned periods of the Senate” as it sees fit. Otherwise,
chamber rules do not distinguish field hearings from those held in Washington.
House and Senate committee rules are generally silent on field hearings specifically, but, in the ^th
rules for the 110 Congress, some committees included related provisions. For example, the rules
of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry and the Senate Select Committee
on Intelligence both require that members be notified 48 hours prior to a field hearing. (For
hearings held in Washington, D.C., the notice requirement is 24 hours.) Rules of the House
Committee on Education and Labor provide another example, specifying that field hearings may
only be scheduled when authorized by the chairman of the full committee.
Funding for committee travel and other administrative issues raised by field hearings are covered
by regulations established by the House Administration Committee and the Senate Rules and
Administration Committee. In the House, regulations printed in the House Administration
Committee’s Committees’ Congressional Handbook cover matters specific to field hearings. The

¹^T^h^{is re}^{port w}^a^{s orig}^ina^lly^w^r^itte^{n by}^T^hom^a^s^P^.^Ca^rr,^f^o^rm^e^r^l^y^aⁿ^Aⁿ^a^l^y^s^{t in Am}^e^r^ic^aⁿ^Na^tiona^{l Gov}^e^rnm^e^{nt a}^t^CRS.
^T^h^e^liste^{d a}^u^th^or^ha^{s up}^da^te^{d t}^h^is^re^{port a}^nd^{is a}^v^a^ila^ble^{to re}^sp^on^d^{to i}ⁿ^q^u^irie^{s o}ⁿ^t^h^e^su^bje^c^t^.

handbook is available from the committee and can be viewed online at http://cha.house.gov/
services/committeehandbook.htm. In the Senate, committee travel in general is governed by
regulations compiled in the U.S. Senate Handbook. Print and online versions of the handbook are
available—to Senate offices only—from the Senate Committee on Rules and Administration.
It is common for committees to prepare guidelines or informal checklists for field hearings based
on chamber and committee rules and practices as well as the respective travel regulations of the
House Administration Committee and the Senate Rules and Administration Committee. Expenses
incurred by a Representative, Senator, or staff aide attending a field hearing—including
transportation, lodging, meals and incidentals—are reimbursable by the committee holding the
hearing. When a field hearing involves oversight of a federal agency, it may be possible, under a
committee’s oversight authority, to request that the agency provide transportation for committee
members and staff. Usually, such requests require a letter from the committee chair to the agency
head.
Although field hearings involve some administrative matters different from Washington hearings,
most of the procedural requirements are the same: scheduling, notice, subpoena authority, quorum
requirements, broadcasting, and the like. Notably, field hearings cannot be explicitly employed
for political or electoral purposes. Regulations in the House forbid official travel for any political
or campaign purposes, and Senate regulations forbid reimbursement for per diem associated with ²
official travel during the 60 days before a Senator’s name appears on a ballot. Publications of the
House Committee on Standards of Official Conduct, Rules of the U.S. House of Representatives
on Gifts and Travel and the Senate Ethics Manual provide details on permissible and ³
nonpermissible reimbursements for Member’s official and other travel.
No rule or regulation determines a field hearing’s location. Committee or subcommittee
leadership usually choose the location, including the specific site, such as a federal building,
public school, or private facility. It may be necessary for staff to travel to the field location a day
or more before the hearing to make certain administrative arrangements—including layout of
tables and chairs for Members, witnesses, and the public, as well as setup of a sound system.
Other advanced preparations may include arrangements for security personnel and sound system
technicians.

²^T^h^{e S}^eⁿ^a^t^e^regu^l^a^tⁱ^oⁿ^s^p^r^o^vⁱ^d^{e s}^o^m^e^e^x^cep^tⁱ^oⁿ^s^f^o^{r ai}^rf^{are an}^dⁱⁿ^cases^w^h^en^{a S}^eⁿ^a^t^o^{r w}^h^o^s^{e el}^ectⁱ^oⁿⁱ^s^no^t
^c^onte^s^te^{d. C}^a^m^p^aⁱ^gⁿ^f^unds^a^r^e^a^llow^e^{d to c}^o^v^e^r^pe^r^dⁱ^e^m^{in s}^o^m^e^cir^c^um^s^t^aⁿ^c^e^s^.^Se^e^Se^nate^E^t^hic^s^M^anu^al^{, S}^.^P^u^b.
¹⁰⁸^-¹^,^p.¹²^{0, a}^v^a^ila^ble^onliⁿ^e^a^t^http:^//e^thic^s^.^s^e^na^te^.g^ov^/^dow^nloa^d^s^/pdf^f^ile^s^/^m^a^nua^l.pdf^.
³^T^h^e^Se^na^te^doc^um^eⁿ^{t is a}^v^a^ila^bl^e^a^t^http^://e^thic^s.se^na^te^.g^ov^/^dow^nloa^ds/^pdf^f^ile^s/^m^a^nua^l.pdf^{. T}^h^e^House^p^ubl^ic^a^tion^is
^a^v^a^ila^ble^a^t^http://w^w^w^.hous^e^.^g^o^v^/^e^t^hic^s^/Gⁱ^f^ts^_a^nd_T^ra^v^e^l_Cha^p^te^r.htm^.^{In the}¹¹⁰^th^C^ong^r^e^s^s^,^the^H^ous^e^a^d^o^p^te^{d (}ⁱⁿ
^H^.^R^e^s^.⁶⁾^ne^w^r^e^g^u^la^tions^g^o^v^e^rⁿ^ing^tr^a^v^e^l^{. T}^h^e^ne^w^g^u^ide^line^s^do^{not a}^pply^{to c}^o^m^m^itte^e^-^f^unde^{d t}^r^a^v^e^l^{, or}^tha^t^pa^id
^f^o^{r by}^f^e^de^ra^{l, s}^t^a^t^e^,^{or loc}^a^l^g^o^v^e^rnm^e^{nt e}ⁿ^titie^s^.^Se^e^“^N^e^w^T^r^av^e^l^Rule^s^f^o^{r O}^f^fⁱ^cⁱ^a^l^l^y^-Conne^c^t^e^d^T^r^a^v^e^l^P^a^{id f}^o^r^by^a
^P^r^iv^a^t^e^S^ourc^e^,^”^Me^m^o^ra^ndum^to^A^{ll Mem}^b^e^r^s^,^O^f^fⁱ^ce^rs^{, a}^{nd Em}^ploy^e^e^s^,^H^ous^e^Com^m^itte^e^{on Sta}ⁿ^da^rds^of^O^f^fⁱ^cⁱ^a^l
^Cond^uc^t,^Ma^{r. 1}⁴^,²⁰⁰⁷^{, a}^v^a^ila^ble^a^t^http^://w^w^w^.hous^e^.^g^o^v^/^e^t^hic^s^/m^_tra^ve^l_rule^s^_pa^id^_pr^iv^a^t^e^_^s^o^u^r^c^e^.^htm^.

^Valerⁱ^{e Heits}^h^u^sen
^An^al^y^s^{t on}^t^h^e^C^ong^res^s^aⁿ^{d L}^e^gⁱ^s^l^at^iv^{e P}^r^oces^s
^v^h^eⁱ^t^sh^us^eⁿ^@^c^rs^.l^oc.^g^ov^{, 7-}⁸⁶³⁵